Yesterday morning I dropped my truck off at "Bradford's Towing in Lamoine, Maine to get the leaky axle seal replaced. I was provided with a service loaner vehicle so that I wouldn't be stranded all day. Since I was "stuck" another day in Bar Harbor I figured I'd do more sightseeing. Drove to the top of Cadillac Mountain (just a hill by Alberta standards) for a birds eye view of the whole area. For the first time in my life I picked up a hitch-hiker (well she was cute). She was on the cruise ship with her family and had hitched a ride (University students don't have much money) to the mountain, getting dropped off part way up to get a better view. She then started walking up the rest of the way when she realized it was further than she expected. So I picked her up. In the 2 minutes she was in the car (we were just around the corner from the top) I found out the above information plus that she was from Minnesota....or was that Mississippi? Then she was off

. After taking a bunch of pictures I drove into the town of Bar Harbor for some lunch. Walking down Main Street I was about to walk into a store (the name of the store had "Moose" in it) when I heard someone behind me mention they were on the cruise ship to someone they were walking with. I turned around and it was the hitch-hiker. Then she was gone again. I mention this because...well she was cute...but way too young...because one of the books I am currently reading (The Celestine Vision by James Redfield) had just talked about synchronicity and chance meetings. The probability of me seeing this same person twice within an hour at two completely different locations are very small. So then, why did I see her twice? There's a reason but you'll have to read the book to find out why. I just didn't act on it.

Talking about synchronicity, check out this website - http://jeremykroeker.com/index.php Jeremy is on a journey from Germany through Iran on his motorcycle. He did another journey to Panama a few years back and then wrote a book about the journey. He left at the end of September. I met him at my motorcycle safety course (actually he was one of the instructors). His blog is amazing. I'm living in luxury compared to his accomodations most nights. Plus I understand the language...well at least until I get to the southern states...where I've been warned that their english isn't quite what I'm used to

. Also you might want to make a donation to his trip (see his website). I could have done the same for my trip (see the Home page on this website), but there are needier people out there than me. I always have the option of selling a kid or two. I'd probably start with Nick since everybody thinks he's so cuuute and I'd probably get the most money for him. Sorry Kat! (By the way, Nick & Kat are the only 2 of my 4 kids getting this blog...though my step-daughter Rhéline could read it if she cared to). That's my cue to talk about my step-daughter, though she'll probably kill me if she finds out I'm talking about her. Last winter she took off for 6 months (by herself), backpacking thru Asia. She stayed in these "local" hotels (if you can call them that) where she would pay something like $1.00 to sleep on a mat on the floor in a room (their definition of a room-not mine) then buy food from the street vendors just like the locals. She had an amazing adventure. She's planning on doing South America this winter...or was...like all world travellers money is always an issue. She seems to enjoy the shoestring travelling budget. I need slightly better accomodations...bad back you know!

So, after that detour to talk about synchronicity and my kids, back to yesterday. After walking around Bar Harbor for a while I headed back to my camper in case my truck was fixed sooner. Did some reading...about "Understanding where we are", "Entering the responsive universe" and "Overcoming the power struggle"

. Called the mechanic and.............Bad News. When taking the disk brake caliper off the rear wheel something broke. Those things do happen. Parts to be ordered...not in till this morning. So I take a walk to the campground office to tell the attendant that I won't be leaving for another day. Oh....if I hadn't mentioned it yet, the campground is officially closed for the season by this time. The campground is deserted...with the exception of me. The attendant says it 's OK. What else can he say...I don't have a vehicle to pull my trailer with. They'll leave the water and electricity on for me. NO CHARGE for their last customer of the season. A great big Thanks to the Bar Harbor KOA.

It's a beautiful evening. Sit outside reading and watch the sun set.

This morning I get a call at 8h30. Truck's ready to roll. The bill was a lot lower than I expected. Clifton at Bradford's Towing doesn't accept Visa, but will accept a personal cheque from a guy from the other end of a different country. What a guy! Great big thanks to Bradford's Towing. Stop in if you ever have car troubles when in Maine.

My drive today was through the most beautiful countryside during a brilliant warm fall day along the coast of Maine. Something I've noticed about Maine is that they have a lot of Antique Stores. They must bring the stuff in from across the country because I saw more Antiques than people.